Items tagged with Alienware

Dell's Alienware division has a knack for making a splash with PC system design, whether it's their big, bad unapologetic notebooks, unique X51 small form-factor PCs, or their no-holds-barred Area-51 killer gaming rigs. In fact, for some folks, Alienware designs can be an either "you love it or hate it" affair. Full disclosure: personally, we tend to be cut from the former affectionate group of performance enthusiasts that generally favor Alienware's outside-the-box design efforts -- and oh boy, Alienware's recent redesign of the Area-51 is way outside the box. In fact, it's not really even...Read more...

In late August, Dell Alienware took the wraps off of a radically new Area 51-branded desktop system featuring an angular case designed for maximum thermal efficiency and ergonomics. We first gave you a glimpse of that system right here, and have a full review of Haswell-E and Tri-SLI powered version of the Area 51 in the works as we speak--that article should be posted very soon. Alienware is officially launching the Area 51 tonight at a swanky event in New York City, but the company has another couple of surprises coming down the pipeline as well, also being unveiled tonight, namely the Alienware...Read more...

Today is a pretty big day in technology. Not only did Intel's long-anticipated Haswell-E finally roll into town (check out review of the burly Intel Core i7 5960X CPU), but we also get a sneak peek at a completely redesigned Alienware Area 51 desktop system. This refreshed system is unlike any previous Alienware rig you've seen -- heck, it's unlike any PC you've ever seen, period. Dell's enthusiast Alienware brand has always stood out for its unique, other-worldly looks, though if there's such a thing as taking things to the next level, this is it. However, there's more to this refresh than just...Read more...

Where mobile devices are concerned, thin is in - something that applies just as well to our notebooks as it does our smartphones. If we're a bit more specific and are talking about gaming notebooks, thin is a word very rarely associated. While Razer has done a great job with its ultra-thin gaming notebooks, most vendors prefer to keep a little bit of the bulk, mostly in the name of performance. Personally, I prefer that, and as it happens, Dell does, too. That's proven by the company's upcoming Alienware 13, a sleek 13-inch notebook that comes in at under 1 inch thick. That's even thinner than...Read more...

Bitcoin just landed a big time partner in Dell, the third largest PC maker in the world and now the largest e-commerce merchant to accept the cryptocurrency. Dell doesn't get the distinction of being the first system builder to jump on the bandwagon, but with nearly $60 billion in annual sales, the OEM is by far bitcoin's biggest e-commerce coup. Coinbase is the bridge connecting the two, and with the third-party payment processor's integration, Dell is able to accept bitcoin payments from both its home consumer and small business clients in the U.S. To pay with bitcoin, you simply add items to...Read more...

Sometimes, you just have to pull out all the stops, which is essentially what Dell is doing by making its Alienware Aurora gaming desktop available with the option of including an NVIDIA GeForce GTX Titan Z GPU. Alienware notes that the Titan Z boasts 5760 CUDA cores, 12GB of GDDR5 memory, and 8 TeraFLOPS of compute power. Of course, there’s plenty of other good stuff available for the Aurora. You can configure a system with an Intel Core i7-4820K (up to 3.9GHz), 8GB (4 x 2GB) of quad-channel DDR3-1600MHz RAM, 2TB 7200rpm HDD, and double-layer 24x CD/DVD burner ODD with a Titan Z for $3,799...Read more...

NVIDIA holds the lion's share of the market in mobile graphics hardware, but it's not the only competitor. When Alienware asked if we'd be interested in looking at a notebook based on AMD's top-end R9 M290X in a single-GPU configuration, we agreed. This system is based on exactly the same hardware and chassis as the Alienware 18-inch model that we reviewed last fall, but it's somewhat more modest hardware whacks a full $2000 off the price. Unlike the massive system we reviewed last time around, this rig's performance aims at what, on a desktop, would be considered a midrange GPU with a moderately...Read more...

NVIDIA holds the lion's share of the market in mobile graphics hardware, but it's not the only competitor. When Alienware asked if we'd be interested in looking at a notebook based on AMD's top-end R9 M290X in a single-GPU configuration, we agreed. This system is based on exactly the same hardware and chassis as the Alienware 18-inch model that we reviewed last fall, but it's somewhat more modest hardware whacks a full $2000 off the price. Unlike the massive system we reviewed last time around, this rig's performance aims at what, on a desktop, would be considered a midrange GPU with a moderately...Read more...

Every company has their own take on Steam Machines, which has been quite interesting to see, and Dell’s strategy is to offer two options. One will be a dedicated SteamOS console while the other will be a desktop PC that doubles as a Steam Machine. The former bears the Alienware X51 name, which is fitting because the SFF X51 has been around for a while and makes sense as a Steam Machine. It also allows consumers to opt for different form factors, depending on their needs. Alienware Steam Machine Dell didn’t offer any specs or pricing, but the Alienware Steam Machine and the Alienware...Read more...

As the specter of the next generation of gaming consoles looms large on the horizon, there’s certainly a case to be made for rolling with a gaming PC instead of an Xbox One or PlayStation 4, and Dell’s Alienware is sweetening the pot by offering a $200 cash back incentive. When you buy a new Alienware gaming rig, you can trade in your old console and get $200 cash back; the same deal applies for old PCs. After you buy your new Alienware system, you can visit the Alienware Trade Up Portal and provide a copy of your receipt and your bank information. Then you’ll be given a prepaid...Read more...

Are the days of the desktop numbered? Perhaps, but if there's one group that'll keep it alive, it's the hardcore gaming crowd. For those who simply cannot be without the latest and greatest pushing the newest titles out of their Steam library, Alienware has updated its Aurora gaming desktop this week. Starting now, gamers can build one with Intel's latest Core i7 processors, including an Extreme Edition option. These chips have up to six cores and 15MB of cache, with overclocked speeds reaching a blistering 4.3GHz using Turbo Boost. These chips are, of course, a part of the new Ivy Bridge-E 4000...Read more...

Things aren't always what they appear to be, and so it is with Dell's Alienware X51 R2, a small form factor (SFF) gaming PC in console digs. It's shaped similar to Microsoft's Xbox 360 Slim, and though it's slightly larger than either a 360 or PlayStation 3, the X51 R2 would be right at home in a living room setting nestled next to a large screen TV. Indeed, it's adept at running Steam's Big Picture mode, and if your primary objective is to play games in the living room, go ahead and consider the X51 R2 a hybrid game console. We know from our autopsy that the X51 R2's internal organs are decidedly...Read more...